American Book Award Winners Announced!!

Before I had a chance to post the finalists for the American Book Award in the Non-fiction catagory, I see that the winner has already been announced. The book featured below is the winner. Word of warning–not everyone will want to read this book. The author Omar El Akad has a very dim view of Western Society. Yes, that would be us, the society we live in. El Akad, an immigrant and a journalist, uses his own experiences to explain how he became deeply disallusioned with the gap between what the West proclaims to be its ideals and its actual actions. He cites the current Gaza crisis as a specific example. He also addresses broader issues such as the anti-immigrant sentiment expressed by many Western countries. Does he have a point? Read it and decide!!

The winner in the Fiction Category is The True True Story of Raga the Gullible (and His Mother) by Rabih Alameddine. This is a book that, unlike some of the contenders for the prize, has at its heart themes of love and acceptance, even though the story is set in Beirut amid civil wars and other hardships. Readers describe the charming and subtle humor Alameddine infuses into a story about a mother/son relationship across several decades. When the author accepted his award, he thanked his psychiatrist and his gastrointestinal doctor. That comment lends great insight into what we as readers should expect from this book!!